Keep Your Eyes Out For This Radio Documentary In Canada

I was at a friend’s house on Thursday night, a former colleague who has one of those U.S. satellite dishes. He turned on ESPN, which normally wouldn’t have been of much interest to me, but he asked for patience.

At 8 PM, they showed the latest in a series of documentaries called “30 For 30,” which normally highlights the behind-the-scenes doings of major sports figures. But this hour was different. It focused on New York’s WFAN, the world’s first all sports radio format.

And it highlighted the duo of “Mike and The Mad Dog" (Mike Francesa and Chris Russo.) These guys absolutely hated each other, didn’t want to be on the air together and were perhaps the two most mismatched pair in New York radio history. And yet, on a unproven format on a not-so-great frequency (1050 when they started) within one book they shot to number one in the ratings and stayed there for nearly two decades.

​One station employee recalls how their stunning numbers caused execs from stations across the country to fly into the Big Apple just to listen to them in their hotel rooms and try to figure out the formula.

The documentary makes clear that their on-air chemistry was the template for almost every sports station in North America that followed. They and the show were both very “New Yawk,” yet variations of them can still be heard in other markets today.

I’m not sure if the "30 For 30" episode will ever turn up on this side of the border, but if you like sports or radio – and especially sports radio – watch for it.